DETAILS regarding expenditure of a Rs 8-crore loan, sanctioned for the Sangrur municipal council by the city improvement trust, has now pitted the BJP against ally SAD. While the loan had been sanctioned on the recommendation of SAD MLA and Chief Parliamentary Secretary Parkash Chander Garg last February, the BJP’s state general secretary Jatinder Kalra on Tuesday sought an explanation on where the money had been spent.

“Authorities and whoever was responsible for getting this loan sanctioned (read Parkash Chander Garg) need to explain as to where the money has been spent and why the loan was taken when there was no elected body in the municipal council at that time,” Kalra said.

Posters have also sprung up across the city with similar questions. “I also saw these posters on Tuesday morning. The common man is angry and has every right to ask about the money spent on development work,” said Kalra, whose wife, Aarti Kapoor, is a councillor in the Sangrur MC. Elections for the civic body were held in February this year, while loan was sanctioned in February 2014 when council was being taken care by an administrator in the absence of any elected body.

“How can an administrator get a loan sanctioned when there was no elected body? Moreover the money was taken for installation of 6 tubewells in the Ganda nallah of Sangrur and a few other projects, but they have not been completed,” Kalra said. Sources said the money has been spent on pending payments of contractors, pending dues of employees and a few road projects and hence objections are being raised as it was not spent for which it was taken.

“I had recommended the loan for development purposes and if there are any objections, let the vigilance department of local bodies wing conduct a thorough inquiry,” said Sangrur SAD MLA and CPS Parkash Chander Garg. On the BJP leader raising questions he said, “It is the prerogative of the BJP high command to look into the statements and take action accordingly”.